Surfing Waves

Surf journo Nick Carroll is doing a 6 part series on surf safety - first part/video is here

https://www.coastalwatch.com/surfing/25 ... ct-fiction

This is more background, pointing out that tbe surfer most in danger of dying in the surf are men aged 40-60. Luckily none of those around these parts (Jaffa is safe).

Anyway well worth having a quick look and I think the subsequent parts will be very useful:

[*]Talk through some of the fact and fiction around who’s at risk in the water
[*]Suggest six things everyone can do, like right away, to make things safe
[*]Show you the first moves to make in a watery crisis
[*]Demo a simple method of rescuing a person using your normal, everyday board
[*]Do a step-by-step, surf-specific CPR instructional
[*]Give you some ideas about resources if you want to take your rescue skills to the next level

Uncle Jaffa has to put in his two bobs worth here ( that’s how old he is, he used two bobs).

Thoughts. Don’t over estimate your ability in the surf you are considering.
Be capable of handling what you are looking at with some oomph to spare.
If you don’t know safety techniques learn them, your leash is not a lifeline! ( they break)
For the river surfing , I did the full river safety training, totally different rescue environment, very glad I did!

Learn CPR and good first aid, the life you save could be your best mate! Do a course with them!
If you have kids, how would you feel if you failed to,save them anywhere because you didn’t know CPR or how to stop a bleed!
Enrol your Kids in Surflifesaving of whatever form your Country and locality has, even livesaving at your local swimming pool or club!

Learn to swim and how to bodysurf, surprisingly there are many learner surfers who cannot swim ( they believe boards and leashes are the only safety equipment they need)

One benefit of knowing what to do is a greatbway to settle Panic.

I have asked before and still wondering, how many of you know first aid and CPR, and rescue someone with safety for yourself?

All this and more, if you go to third surf destinations, it is wise to have these skills and a passable first aid kit!

My safety tip for the day is to get yourself a rest stroke for sketchy situations where you don't have your board and you need to rest and calm down. My rest stroke is pretty simple. I get on my back and float in my wetsuit, my arms spread out from my shoulders and then come into my sides (just easy arm strokes), my legs just kick normally (usually nice and slow so I can rest). The point of the stroke obviously is to allow you to rest and breathe easily (since you're on your back it's easy to breath unobstructed). I've used this stroke every time I've been in uncomfortable situations, mostly in body surfing/free diving situations when I was younger, because it helped calm me down. I get into a gentle rhythm and focus on my breathing as I make my way into shore. The nice thing about this stroke is that you can see the approaching waves as you swim back to shore because you're on your back. Anyway, this is a good thread. I hope to get some ideas from it.

I am probably at high risk for dying according to that article. I am older, I surf alone a lot, I surf in waves that can have some serious consequences occasionally (however not often enough for me lately). My safety in the ocean comes from being in good health and good fitness and knowing the dangers and how to mitigate them and knowing my limits. I go to the doctor for regular checkups and my blood pressure and bloodwork are always normal. The good health part is a conscious effort to try to eat a reasonably healthy diet and to not smoke and to not drink to excess. I work at my fitness and instead of resting like RinyDink I condition myself to work with less oxygen. I often don't have an opportunity to rest and need to get out of the impact zone so what is needed is the ability to continue when I am winded so I hike up a hill a few times a week and try to get myself to that place where I feel like I need oxygen and keep it there as long as I can. The other parts are knowledge from experience. Well anyway if I quit posting I may well have died surfing or perhaps just a likely a thousand other causes of death., Unless it was euthanasia I hopefully died happy. If I should die I have no regrets....well okay I regret hurting anyone if I have and I am sure that is likely >>...No I don't have any plans of dying soon.

oldmansurfer wrote: I work at my fitness and instead of resting like RinyDink I condition myself to work with less oxygen. I often don't have an opportunity to rest and need to get out of the impact zone

FU. Do me a favor and ignore my posts. I'd rather not have to respond to you or read your posts to me. I'm not reading or responding to your posts any more. They're a waste of my time.

Hey guys, don’t take it personally, different surfs, different people, I want both of you in good fettle enjoying your surfs!

jaffa1949 wrote:Hey guys, don’t take it personally, different surfs, different people, I want both of you in good fettle enjoying your surfs!

I agree. Don't hold a grudge and throw snarky comments into the forum. Just ignore the contributor that annoys you. It's as simple as that. Billie ignores me and I appreciate that.

Great post!

Since retiring from teaching, I've let my CPR certification expire; so I'll sign up for another class at my school. It'll be a good excuse to reconnect with colleagues and students. If you live in the USA here's a resource - https://www.redcross.org/take-a-class

I fully agree with the heart attack warning for older folks. As a 67 year old who usually stays in the water too long, I take a low dose aspirin before each surf to protect my heart. Love the orange flavor.

jaffa1949 wrote:Hey guys, don’t take it personally, different surfs, different people, I want both of you in good fettle enjoying your surfs!

I hold no grudges but I will attempt to do as he asks me to, however I still have my point of view to share. It's that we are so different that makes this place a wealth of information and that is my opinion that I am sharing.

As far as I’m concerned done and dusted!

oldmansurfer wrote:

jaffa1949 wrote:Hey guys, don’t take it personally, different surfs, different people, I want both of you in good fettle enjoying your surfs!

I hold no grudges but I will attempt to do as he asks me to, however I still have my point of view to share. It's that we are so different that makes this place a wealth of information and that is my opinion that I am sharing.

Thanks OMS.

Just a personal observation, every year without fail I’m asked to help save someone’s friend who can’t get in or in trouble. They are always a bit overweight and on a Short board. I have to tell them to get on my longboard, and then paddle their short board while giving them pushes. The 2nd sad thing is the friend couldn’t even help. Blind leading the blind.

waikikikichan wrote: The 2nd sad thing is the friend couldn’t even help. Blind leading the blind.

yeah, Nick Carroll has said in the link and emphasised elsewhere that people always seem to think that they are fine and can handle themselves, but rarely have the knowledge to help other people; he thinks its part of being a good surfer/water user that you know what to do

Having done personal injury litigation in a previous life, I'm always alert to the myriad of ways people manage to injure themselves - for example, if I see someone take off on a close out or just fall, I tend to keep an eye on them to make sure they surface and are fine. Saw a guy the other day who fell and his board launched about 10ft in the air and came down, tail first, maybe 6 inches from his head. He wasnt covering his head or anything. I turned to the guy sitting next to me (there were only three of us out) and said 'jeez, he almost collected that on the head' and the guy next to me said 'what, who?'.

So while you cant rely on others, you can try not to be an 'other' yourself. Hearing 'he was rescued doing something he loved' is much better than hearing 'he died doing something he loved' [<- not my original comment, stole it from someone else]

As an aside, I dont quite agree with Nick C that the ocean tends to spit out people who are too inexperienced and so we shouldnt worry about them too much. While this is almost always the case on a beach break if someone has a board attached to them (because the board will drag them towards the shore), if the leash breaks or they are surfing a point break with a major current, well, the number of swimmers who drown every year shows that inexperience can be serious. Plus if you dont know how to fall or avoid someone else, you can get into trouble quickly.

Yes if I happen to die surfing let me make this clear "I don't want to die surfing" so the concept of dying doing something I love is pointless. I have trained in lifesaving and CPR but not recently. I helped lots of people get back to shore and never needed any help myself. Over here surfers are the auxiliary lifeguards. But that said surfers die. One older guy at Hanalei a few years ago caught a wave and then no one saw him again. He was a veteran surfer and the conditions weren't too crazy dangerous or so I heard (double overhead or 12 foot faces or 6 foot Hawaiian). I don't think they ever figured out what happened.http://www.hungrywalrus.com/2013/02/10/rip-rick-proczka-big-hanalei-bay/

Surf safety series - episode 2

https://www.coastalwatch.com/surfing/25 ... -a-legrope

six ways to become a safer surfer

One of the comments under the article makes an excellent point - Being aware of who and what surrounds you in the water is paramount. The danger is always heading shoreward. So you should always know what is coming toward you from that direction. Yeah, and paddle wide! Annoys me no end

xxxxx, I'm nearing that 40. I have a family history of high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

I am still shaking from an experience I had about a month ago. Lost my board in an unfamiliar beach break in Mexico and didn't realize how strong the rip was. I didn't know which way to swim to get out of it - just unfamiliar with the territory. I know how the rips work at home, but not here. It was a big day and I was a good ways out back.

Anyway, I was able to swim in, but it wasn't easy and slightly different circumstances and I would have left a widow and a 9 yr old daughter without a dad.

LostAtSea wrote:I am still shaking from an experience I had about a month ago..

Never live up to your user name!

dtc wrote:

LostAtSea wrote:I am still shaking from an experience I had about a month ago..

Never live up to your user name!

You know what? I just changed my username (I was JJGreenberg) and I had to think of something out of the blue, and that was probably in my subconscious!

Wow two things of consider importance here as we don't want to lose anyone.

pmcaero, a family history of high blood pressure and high cholesterol , ok it have you been checked for your levels.
The second , about rips, always a good study to make is how they work at any new beach!
Don't know about Mexican lifeguards, but lack of a safety check definitely could have harmed your family!

Imagine a little further because I've had to deal with it at my beach.

Older surfer, but has hit the water for a while, gets caught in rip, after losing board, tries to swim against rip.
Panics, has heart attack, didn't drown but died before help got to him. I was part of the rescue resuscitation team and gave evidence at the inquest. He was 47.

Please guys know your health and the beach!